Philips EXP103 eXpanium Portable MP3-CD Player with 45-Second Anti-Skip and Car Kit
Philips EXP103 eXpanium Portable MP3-CD Player with 45-Second Anti-Skip and Car Kit
Product Description
Amazon.com Review
This sharp-looking unit is one of the first in a new generation of devices able to play traditional audio CDs as well as MP3 audio files burned onto CD-R or CD-RW discs. Although we maintain a few caveats with the Philips eXpanium's somewhat clunky design, we were pleased with its sonic performance.
In our tests, it took anywhere from 20 seconds to a minute to create a directory from an MP3-encoded CD, depending on the number of files on the disc. Once it was playing, though, the quality of sound was quite good. The dynamic range was more than adequate: the high end was crisp and clean, and the low tones were solid, even without the bass boost activated.
The antishock system was virtually infallible when playing MP3s. We suppose that if we'd dropped the player down a long set of wooden steps, it might have skipped, but short of that, the music kept on coming, ignoring our jolts and bumps. It didn't hold up quite as well for normal audio CDs (or CD-Rs or CD-RWs encoded with real-time tracks), but the antishock protection for them was still very good. However, while Philips claims that the shock protection is good for 45 seconds on audio CDs and up to 100 seconds for MP3s, the player took what seemed an inordinate amount of time to recover after skipping.
Navigating through and within CD tracks was straightforward, but in MP3 format the unit provided no way to search within a track. The display was relatively difficult to read, lacked a backlight, and did not display the track names on MP3 files. Additionally, the display's dimness and placement at the back of the lid made the unit hard to use in a dark car.
Overall, the eXpanium currently leads the way in what will likely be the next big portable audio format, and it's only a matter of time before they package the technology in a slightly sleeker, more user-friendly design.
Pros:
Utilizes cutting-edge MP3/CD technology
Crisp and clean high-end sound and solid low tones
Nicely packaged with a pair of small earbud headphones and a car kit
Hard-to-read display
Long skip-recovery time
Lacked ability to search within a track in the MP3 format
Average customer rating: 
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Philips EXP103 eXpanium Portable MP3-CD Player with 45-Second Anti-Skip and Car Kit
Manufacturer: Philips ProductGroup: CE Binding: Electronics  All Portable CD Players
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Product Features:
ASIN: B00004UE2R |
Product Description
Rip It. Burn It. Spin It. With the Philips EXP103, you can take not only your MP3 files with you wherever you go, but you can also play regular audio CDs as well as CD-Rs and CD-RWs. Take your Philips eXpanium 103 outside, to the library, on a plane - even your car. With up to 100 seconds Magic ESP, you are sure to enjoy continuous music enhanced with Digital Dynamic Bass Boost. Headphones and an AC/CD adapter complete this flexible portable CD player.Amazon.com Review
This sharp-looking unit is one of the first in a new generation of devices able to play traditional audio CDs as well as MP3 audio files burned onto CD-R or CD-RW discs. Although we maintain a few caveats with the Philips eXpanium's somewhat clunky design, we were pleased with its sonic performance.In our tests, it took anywhere from 20 seconds to a minute to create a directory from an MP3-encoded CD, depending on the number of files on the disc. Once it was playing, though, the quality of sound was quite good. The dynamic range was more than adequate: the high end was crisp and clean, and the low tones were solid, even without the bass boost activated.
The antishock system was virtually infallible when playing MP3s. We suppose that if we'd dropped the player down a long set of wooden steps, it might have skipped, but short of that, the music kept on coming, ignoring our jolts and bumps. It didn't hold up quite as well for normal audio CDs (or CD-Rs or CD-RWs encoded with real-time tracks), but the antishock protection for them was still very good. However, while Philips claims that the shock protection is good for 45 seconds on audio CDs and up to 100 seconds for MP3s, the player took what seemed an inordinate amount of time to recover after skipping.
Navigating through and within CD tracks was straightforward, but in MP3 format the unit provided no way to search within a track. The display was relatively difficult to read, lacked a backlight, and did not display the track names on MP3 files. Additionally, the display's dimness and placement at the back of the lid made the unit hard to use in a dark car.
Overall, the eXpanium currently leads the way in what will likely be the next big portable audio format, and it's only a matter of time before they package the technology in a slightly sleeker, more user-friendly design.
Pros:
Customer Reviews:
4 YEARS LATER and it still works like a charm!.......2004-08-11
it worked fine for 1year.........2004-01-14
Long-term update.......2002-09-09
On a few occasions, the eXpanium has locked up and refused to play certain MP3 tracks. When this happens, the <> buttons often fail to work as well. This usually requires turning off the unit to clear the problem and, in some cases, making sure it doesn't try to play that particular track again. I had one disc from which the eXpanium never would play one certain track at all - maybe the disc had a minor defect there, or maybe there was something about the MP3 itself that the eXpanium didn't like, but it just never wanted to play that one track. Again, though, these lockups are rare - the eXpanium usually plows happily through MP3 discs for hours at a time.
Since I use mine almost exclusively for MP3 playback, I have little experience with standard audio discs, but it has performed beautifully with the few I've tried. I haven't tried using it to play a standard audio CD while I'm on the road, so I can't say whether its skip protection there is as good as it is in MP3 playback mode.
Other reviewers have mentioned that the output of the headphone jack is weak, and I have to agree. Even with a proper set of headphones, as opposed to the included "ear buds," it still just doesn't put out much even at maximum volume. I wouldn't recommend it for personal listening in noisy environments. However, I generally use my eXpanium in the car, with the included cassette adapter, and the output level from the "Line Out" jack is perfectly adequate for that.
The "resume" feature usually works well - note that, in MP3 mode, "resume" simply restarts the most recently played MP3 track from the beginning - but I've noticed that it sometimes resumes the wrong track. This MIGHT be due to the fact that I tend to run it from the car DC adapter and seldom have batteries installed in it, but the eXpanium seems to have a non-volatile memory to keep track of its "resume" location, as unplugging it from the car [even without batteries] usually does not make it forget which track was last played. Sometimes, though, it just forgets where it was.
The DC power adapter in the car kit seems to be somewhat poorly designed and does not correctly fit my car's lighter socket, nor does it fit well in a friend's car or in the accessory power socket I installed in my car. The adapter seems to be just a bit oversized, making it a very tight fit indeed. As a result, its connectors were soon damaged, and the adapter could not be inserted, so I bought a universal DC adapter from Radio Shack for use with this unit. That works just fine - at least it fits into my power socket!
The display IS strictly bare-bones and does not display any ID3 tag data, but as I have stated in my earlier review, I already knew about the display before I bought mine, and I bought it anyway, on the strength of the reviews about its skip protection. Keep in mind, though, that the eXpanium 103 IS a first-generation model! Philips has broadened its eXpanium line, and newer models do have more informative displays - including ID3 tag support - and a wider array of features. If price is a factor, and you don't mind putting up with a completely basic display and sacrificing some features found in newer players, then the eXpanium 103 is a very good choice. If you don't mind paying more for a newer and more advanced player, then by all means, buy one of the newer models in the eXpanium line. To paraphrase an old advertising slogan... Hasn't skipped yet!
Look at the price........2002-08-23
Philips EXP103 eXpanium.......2002-08-14
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